


Lokasenna

by RoseGoldRomantic



Series: Tesseract [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-26
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 07:08:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 14,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27719332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoseGoldRomantic/pseuds/RoseGoldRomantic
Summary: A Loki x reader that takes place during the Dark World. Follow-up fic to Tesseract. When you find yourself transported to Asgard, what will you do as the convergence approaches?
Relationships: Loki (Marvel)/Reader
Series: Tesseract [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2027486
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

I squinted, blinking as my eyes adjusted to fully take in the glittering city around me. Thor, Loki, and strangers alike stood staring at me, shock written clearly across their faces. Loki stared at me with wide eyes, a mixture of emotion washing over his masked face.

“Who are you?” Thor questioned, slightly raising his hammer towards me. “Your face reminds me of someone… are you the one Son of Coul spoke of? Are you also a child of Coul?”

“I think so?” I choked out, slowly walking up to Thor, “Agent Phil Coulson is my brother, if that’s what you mean.”

“Yes!” Thor exclaimed, a smile spreading across his face, “Your brother is an honorable man, Y/N. He spoke often of you during my time on earth. I see your time in my brother’s captivity has left you none the worse for wear.”

“I wasn’t exactly a captive…” I said, glancing towards Loki, “I chose to stay there. In the end, I’m glad I did. I learned a small amount of what the Tesseract can do. Not only was I kept safe, I was able to shut the portal in time to save the city.”

“It is an honor to meet you.” Thor said, his smile infectious. “But I must ask, why are you here? How did you manage to follow my brother and I to our home in Asgard?”

I glanced at Loki once more, Thor looking to his brother as well. Loki gestured for Thor to remove the mask, his impatience showing in his rushed mannerism.

“Why did I have to wear that absurd thing?” he grumbled, rubbing his jaw. 

“You’ll wear it again if you don’t explain lady Y/N’s presence here.” Thor said, holding it up.

“The Tesseract threw off energy into her before my arrival on earth.” Loki said, his eyes softening. “The energy still flows in her, it’s the reason she was able to withstand the impact of closing the portal. I am unsure how it does not kill her, but it is doubtless also the reason that she is here. When the Tesseract was used to transport us, the energy that lies within her must have also moved to remain with its original source, bringing her here.”

Thor’s expression darkened slightly. “The Tesseract is not something about which to be jested. I shall take you to someone who may be able to help.” he turned to Loki, “And I shall also escort you to your cell while you await father’s decision.”

Thor grabbed Loki’s arm, guiding him up the pathway and handing the Cube to a guard that had since arrived. 

“Place this in the vault.” Thor said, “It will be safe there until we have further knowledge of it. Also please inform the Allfather of my arrival.”

The guard nodded, taking the container, and running off ahead. I followed beside Thor, stealing glances at Loki when I thought it would go unnoticed. Almost every time I looked over, he was returning my glance, his expression sullen, almost mournful. 

The city streets that we walked through were absolutely beautiful, even the most functional pieces of architecture beautifully crafted and adorned with elegance. Citizens would occasionally stare at us as we walked by, especially children. I could never tell if they stared at me, or Loki, as he was escorted in cuffs.

We eventually came to what I could only describe as a castle, walking past what seemed like an impossible number of pillars. We came to a stop in front of a large throne, as golden as the rest of the city. A man sat in it, hair and beard white, holding a large staff. A lady stood beside the throne, her kind eyes pulling up in a brief smile as she looked at me, but then falling to a sad frown as they looked at Loki.

“Father, I have retrieved Loki as you asked.” Thor said, kneeling. I scrambled to follow suit, not wishing to displease Odin. “Mother, I have someone that needs to speak with you.”

“Guards, take this snake to his cell.” Odin huffed, gesturing to Loki with a wave of his hand. “I have no time for him presently. Thor, send the earth child with Frigga, I have serious business to speak with you about. The realms are dipping into chaos, and we must rein them in before the convergence.”

Thor gave me a gentle push in Frigga’s direction, reassuring me that I would be fine. I walked over to where she stood, glancing back to see Loki being taken to his holding place. He shot me one last look, mouthing something that I could not decipher before he was out of my sight.

“Hello, dear lady.” Frigga said, outstretching her hand to give mine a warm shake, “I know that you’re of some importance to one of my sons, but please tell me what you would have me do for you.” 

“I don’t exactly know.” I said, following Frigga as she began to leave the throne room, “We had the Tesseract in a research facility on earth, and I was struck with a wave of radiation. As a result of that, a part of the Tesseract’s power seems to remain in me.”

As we walked, I recounted all that had happened between the Tesseract’s radiation burst and when I had arrived in Asgard. Despite my initial hesitance, I included my knowledge of the scepter’s control over Loki, his actions towards me, and even of the visions that I had received during my time with Loki and afterwards, at the hospital. Frigga never once interrupted, always nodding, sometimes asking for clarification. Her entire demeanor was warm and inviting, and I found myself easily trusting her. She was especially interested in the visions that I had been having, my telepathic link with Loki and the Tesseract, and what I knew about Loki’s time away from Asgard. She briefly explained what had caused Loki to leave Asgard suddenly, and how they had all thought him dead.

“I don’t know much apart from when I was present,” I said, “but I do know that whoever he was found by, was far from kind to him. When he arrived on earth, he was sickly, pale, and was constantly shuddering. New York seemed to be the first time he had seen the sun in a long time. I know that what he did is far from acceptable, but please understand that not all of it was his idea. The way that the Chitauri spoke to him-” I shuddered, “I know that if I had been in his place, I would not have lived through it.”

“I understand,” Frigga sighed, “But it is doubtful that Odin will see things that way. He will only see someone that has caused more chaos in yet another of the realms under his protection. I will do my best to convince him otherwise, but I foresee the Allfather punishing Loki very harshly, perhaps even with death.” darkness crept up slowly up in Frigga’s expression. I could sense her love for her son, no matter how wayward he had strayed.

“Will I get to see him again?” the words tumbled out of my mouth faster than I could hold them back, and my cheeks flushed pink.

“Not if my husband has anything to say about it. He would deem the infinity stone’s energy within you too powerful to allow Loki anywhere near. Not to mention the fact that I doubt he will let Loki see anyone.” my face fell, and I sighed.

“Thankfully, he won’t have any say.” Frigga smiled, “I know of a way that we can both speak with him. Perhaps he has more knowledge for me that I can use to help remove the stone’s energy from your body.”

“Are you saying we’re going to sneak past guards to go see him?” I said, shock lacing my voice. 

“Not exactly.” Frigga smiled, “My son isn’t the only one with the ability to use magic.”


	2. Chapter 2

With those words, the room we stood in melted away in a shimmer of green, and I instead stood in a smaller room. The walls were white, a strange force field blocking the exit to the hallway. Elegant furniture had been placed in the center of the room, and on a chair sat Loki, facing away from where we stood.

“Have you come to reprimand me so soon, mother?” Loki sighed, rising from his seat. “I expected you to wait until Odin summoned me to-” his statement cut off when his eyes fell on me, his expression softening slightly. 

“You’re not the only reason I have cause to come here.” Frigga retorted, “I am tasked with finding a way to remove the infinity stone’s power from this earth child. I need all the knowledge you possess about it. Do not hide anything from me if you wish her to live.” 

Frigga walked closer to Loki, lowering her voice to a level that I could just barely hear, “And I know that you do. So, tell me.”

“Always so perceptive.” Loki sighed, glancing back towards me for a moment. “There’s not much I can tell you that she doesn’t already know. I do not possess any knowledge in how to remove the energy without harming her, or what kind of effect it will leave if left to stay in her body. I only know that the energy in her seems insistent on traveling with the stone if the stone’s power is used.”

“Then it is good that the stone will remain locked in the vault until we know what to do.” Frigga said. “There may be some books in my library that will help us understand what is happening, and how to stop it. I will return shortly.”

With those words, Frigga melted away, leaving me alone with Loki in his cell.  
He stared at me with such strong emotion in his eyes, I almost wanted to look away. He slowly stepped towards me, reaching out for my hand.

“Are you alright?” he breathed, disappointed when his hands passed through mine. 

“Yes, I think so.” I responded. “The fire in my veins has died down since the initial journey here. But little progress has been made in explaining the visions the stone has given me.”

“If only my mother had brought your physical form to me…” he mused, “Visions are a supremely unique new addition. I can’t tell how the energy from it affected your psyche without being able to touch you.”

“I don’t understand exactly what’s going on,” I said, “but I’m glad that you’re safe, for now at least. I don’t foresee your mother letting anything happen to you.”

“I hope that you are right.” he muttered, “I am glad that you are safe as well. Your statement back on earth about being trapped, being an experiment, worried me greatly.” His face darkened, and I reached out to touch his cheek, forgetting that I was merely a projection until my hand passed through his face.

“It’s not much, but here’s what I could find for now.” Frigga said as she apparated, Setting a large stack of books down on an end table. “It will take some time to thoroughly read all of them, but hopefully I will be able to stall your trial with Odin until Thor’s return so you might have time to read all of them. A few of them are in common, so you will be able to help read them, (Y/N). I will be searching for more in time, but this will be a good start. We need to leave for now, but when next I send you here, I’ll make sure you have a corporeal form so you can interact with the books.”

I nodded, shooting a glance at Loki before walking back to Frigga.

“Until next time.” I said, waving awkwardly, a slight blush creeping across my cheeks.

Loki returned the gesture, his face soft, his expression longing as Frigga and I disappeared in a glow of green.

Frigga and I reappeared in her chambers, in the same places we had been when it all started.

“I’ll have one of my handmaids help you to your room, and bring you some clean clothes. If you have need of anything, don’t hesitate to send for me. For now, I must speak with my husband about postponing Loki’s trial until Thor’s return.”

“Thank you so much, I can’t thank you enough for all of your help.” I said, taking her hand.

“Helping my son turn himself around will be thanks enough.” Frigga smiled, squeezing my hand before turning to leave.

The handmaid then stepped in, guiding me to my room with a smile. After instructing me on where I might bathe, she left me alone in the large room. A fire crackled in the fireplace across from my bed, and the clean clothes Frigga spoke of were sitting on the bed.

After I had bathed and changed into the appropriate clothing, I threw myself onto my enormous bed, staring at the ceiling. Finally able to contemplate the gravity of the past week of my life, I felt paralyzed, pinned to the bed under the weight of my circumstances. The Tesseract’s power still resided within me, and unless we figured it out quickly, the one person with the most knowledge of the stone’s power could be killed before anything could be done about it. As if that wasn’t enough, I was developing feelings for him, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to let myself do that. He was unstable, he made bad decisions, and he wasn’t in the ideal circumstance at the moment, but he was also gentle, he cared about my safety, and he was remorseful for the actions he had taken. Was possible redemption on his part enough for me to pursue my emerging feelings?

I fell asleep on these thoughts, my dreams a muddled mess of my experience with the Tesseract and Loki, until it wasn’t. My dreams suddenly snapped into a vivid and clear picture of a barren planet, grey dust and dirt swirling in the breeze. I saw Thor, along with a woman I did not recognize, standing with Loki atop a small cliff. In the distance I could see what seemed to be spaceships of some kind, their towering forms shaped almost like crosses. I heard a single word before I startled awake, “Malekith”.

I bolted upright in bed. Frigga needed to know about this. I sprinted through the palace, back to where Frigga and I had talked the day before. She sat, reading a large volume while relaxing on a chaise. 

“Good morning!” she smiled, “Coming here must have really taken a lot of energy from you! You had been asleep for two days!”

“I think I got another vision from the stone.” I said, the words tumbling out of my mouth faster than I could filter them, “I saw a strange planet, Thor was there with Loki, and I heard a word before I woke up… I think it was a name. Malekith?” 

“This is graver than I originally thought.” Frigga said, putting her book down and standing up, “The convergence is nearer than we thought, and the dark realm grows in power. The stone is repeatedly giving you visions of the future, and it’s obviously sapping your energy to do so. We must find the way to remove the energy from you before something happens that causes it to kill you.”

She took my hand and led me back to my room. “I’m going to send you to begin reading while I search for more books and try to find out more about what we can do. I shall also see if Thor is able to return sooner than thought previously.” 

I nodded, and she waved her arm, sending me to the cell.

Loki smiled at my arrival, until he noticed my expression. “What’s wrong, (Y/N)? 

“I’ve had another vision. The convergence is near.” I breathed as he came closer, “Who is Malekith?”


	3. Chapter 3

“How do you know of him?” Loki said, coming up to me. “Was he in the vision you were given?”

I shook my head, “Only his name. I saw a dusty, dark, barren planet, and Thor was there with a woman I’ve never seen before. You were there too, and you were all looking over off of a small cliff.”

“Svartalfheim.” Loki muttered. “If the convergence is truly that close, we must hurry to remove the power from you.” 

Loki guided me over to one of the chairs, where we both sat down. 

“What’s the convergence?”

“I’ll start with your first question. Malekith is a Dark Elf. A race that existed before light existed in the universe. Odin has a book about them, though it has been thought that they were long dead. Malekith is the leader of the Dark Elves. He made a weapon out of one of the Infinity Stones, and called it the Aether. While the other Stones have more solid forms, like the Tesseract, The Aether is fluid. It changes every kind of matter you can think of into dark matter, and seeks out host bodies to live in, drawing strength from their life force. Similarly to what is happening to you with the Tesseract. Malekith wanted to use the power of the Aether to return the universe to darkness once more. Odin’s father Bor put a stop to Malekith’s efforts after much warring. It was one of the events that set Asgard as the crown of the peaceful realms, ushering in peace.”

“Does this mean that he’s coming back?” I asked.

“Quite possibly.” Loki answered, standing and walking over to pick up a book. “It looks like we will need to not only look for answers about the Tesseract, but about the Dark Elves and Aether as well.”

I nodded, taking the book that he was handing to me. 

“The convergence is a time where the distance between realms is… blurred.” Loki said, “Portals can take you from any one realm to another instantly, beyond control. Malekith no doubt plans to use this time to spread the darkness so fast that we have no chance of stopping it.” 

“Then I suppose I had better start reading.” I said, sighing at the task at hand.

“Yes,” he nodded, “However, first, I would like to check and make sure that the Tesseract’s energy has not damaged you more than exhausting you.”

I simply nodded in agreement, extending my arms to place my hands in his when he reached for them. He closed his eyes, and I was left to look at him, studying the features of his face the closest I had ever been able to. His brow was slightly furrowed in concentration, his lips lightly pressed together. A slight chill ran through my body, causing me to shudder. His thumb softly rubbed my hand, squeezing gently. I glanced down, my cheeks flushing pink as I stared at his hands. His slender fingers almost completely wrapped around my hand, the small amount of contact enough to send my pulse everywhere. After I was able to regain control of my blushing and heart rate, I looked up to his face once more. I was met with his eyes staring directly into mine, a small smirk spreading on his face as I blushed once more. 

“It appears that you are unharmed.” he said quietly, the smile still present, “The Stone’s power is still present, but it seems that it only saps your energy, and does not harm you otherwise.”

I slowly withdrew my hands, my skin longing for the contact as soon as it had ceased. 

“That’s good to hear.” I stammered quietly, picking up the book once more. “Time to get some reading done.”

I opened it and began reading as Loki grabbed a book for himself and read. I buried my face in the pages, hoping to hide the remnants of my red face. The script in the book he had handed me was so beautiful, handwritten but consistent enough to pass for print. The book seemed to be a history of magic in Asgard and the surrounding realms. Hours passed, both of us poring through our books in search of any kind of answer. I was about a quarter of the way through my first book when a thought crossed mind.

“Loki, you said the Aether seeks a host vessel, correct?” Loki nodded at me, placing his book down. “If Malekith wants to use the Aether again, and he doesn’t currently have it, that means it’s probably in someone else right now. That would mean that he has the ability to draw out that power from that host so he can use it! If the Infinity stones all originated from the same thing, that means the same technique might work to remove the Tesseract’s power from me.”

“You’re... You’re right.” Loki said, his face lighting up, “We need to be finding out as much as we can about Malekith and the Dark Elves. Frigga must know what she needs to look for. Can you go and tell her?”

“I don’t know how to go back,” I said, “Frigga didn’t exactly explain how to tell her I was ready to go back to my room.”

“I’m sure I could help you with that.” he said stepping closer to me. “If she forgets again, I’ll teach you how to trigger the return yourself. But for now…” he pressed his palms on my temples gently, “I can do that for you.” He softly pressed his lips to my forehead as I shimmered out of his presence, returning to my room.

I walked back to Frigga’s room, but she wasn’t there. A maid directed me to the throne room, as Frigga might still be there. I walked quickly, hoping that she might have found something for us to use. I entered, only to find Frigga pacing the floor.

“How did you- Nevermind.” she said, taking my hand. “You need to come with me. Odin has decided to proceed with Loki’s trial tomorrow and though I’ve done my best to convince him otherwise, I fear Loki’s life is in danger.” 

“There’s no way to stall any longer?” I asked, my face falling as Frigga shook her head. “Is Thor going to be back in time?” 

“He is on his way now, but I don’t think even his presence would be enough to save Loki from Odin.” Frigga sighed.

“I have to tell him.” I said, “We realized that there’s a chance to learn how to remove the Tesseract’s energy from me, since Malekith can do so with the Aether! We will need to study more strategically if we only have a day left.”

“That’s a fantastic idea. I will pore through the palace library to see if I can find anything that will help us.” Frigga said, walking back to my room with me. When we had entered and closed the door, Frigga sat me on a chair. “Please make sure he doesn’t make any rash decisions during the trial. His stubborn head and sharp tongue may just be the death of him if he isn’t careful.”

I nodded, taking a deep breath as Frigga sent me off, again forgetting to give me instructions for how to come back. 

As I materialized in Loki’s cell, Loki sat facing away from me on the chaise, reading a book with intense focus. 

“I have some bad news.” I said, walking towards him. “Odin is going to see you tomorrow.”

“It was going to happen eventually.” he sighed, turning to look at me. “In that case, we had best keep looking for answers with the time that we have left. It is...doubtful I will return once I leave this cell.”

I picked up another book and sat next to him on the other end of the chaise. “Promise me you’ll be smart about this.” I said quietly. “Promise me you won’t let your stubbornness get you in trouble.”

“I’ll do my best, darling,” he chuckled, “I promise. Odin always seems to know how to push my buttons, always seems to bring up the fact that I come from nothing.”

“Where you come from does not dictate where you go.” I said, resting a hand on his leg, “Nor does it dictate how you respond to those who would degrade you.”

“I’m beginning to see that.” he smiled softly, placing his hand on mine, “With any luck, the idea will hold true in my head. Now, let’s free you of the Stone.”


	4. Chapter 4

We dove further into the books, long past the setting of the sun. I read through the two books that I could, then waiting patiently for Loki to finish the one that he held. I picked up one of the books in Loki’s stack, the golden symbols printed on the spine indecipherable to me. The pages were similar to the book that I had read, neat, uniform script handwritten in endless rows. I ran my finger along a line, wishing that I could read what secrets the book held. I turned the page, hoping for even an illustration to give me context for the book, but was only met with more script.

“It’s in Vanaheinian.” Loki said, and I looked up to see him standing in front of me. “Though the subject matter seems to be rather irrelevant to our new search.”

“Beautiful to look at.” I said, turning more pages before closing the volume.

“I agree.” Loki said, his eyes lingering on me for a while before taking the book back. 

“You should go back to your room and sleep, (Y/N).” Loki said, “You need to recover as much energy as possible.”

“You’re probably right.” I sighed. “I only wish I could have been more of a help! I’ve read only the two I could, but even then it took me a great deal of time.”

“You have been a great help.” Loki said, taking my hand, “If nothing else, you have kept me company in this lonely place for a time.”

I smiled, squeezing his hand lightly. Before I could ask him to send me back to my room, my vision cut out, my eyes blinded by a white light so bright closing my eyes changed nothing.

“(Y/N)?” I faintly heard Loki say in confusion, before my legs collapsed beneath me. “(Y/N)?!?” His voice grew more frantic, and I could feel his arms holding me up as I lost awareness of my surroundings.

I was once again on the barren planet, Svartalfheim as Loki had called it. I stood, being held by someone, helpless and unable to move as the strange woman from my earlier vision levitated in front of me. A Dark Elf stood, draining a red, liquid substance from her. Malekith was draining the Aether from this woman, and Thor lay on the ground nearby. 

As quickly as it had begun, my vision ended, white light blinding me before fading away to reveal the walls of Loki’s cell. I was laying on the chaise, Loki sitting beside me frantically rubbing my hand and brushing my hair from my face. 

“Oh thank heavens!” Loki exclaimed, pulling me into a snug embrace, his hand stroking my hair. “Are you alright? What happened? Do I need to call someone?”

“I’m alright,” I said shakily, hesitant to break the embrace to speak to him. “I just had another vision of Svartalfheim. I saw the Aether. It’s in a woman, the same one from my other vision.”

“What did she look like?” Loki asked, withdrawing from the embrace to stand and pace.

“Brown, long hair, slender build. I didn’t get a chance to see her eyes at all.” I paused to take a deep breath, exhaustion setting in. “She had Asgardian clothing on but then again, so do I and I’m not Asgardian.” I said, my skin already longing to feel Loki’s touch once more. My vision swam a little, and I leaned back in the chaise to conserve energy. 

“We have to find her.” he said, kneeling beside me. “But first, go get some sleep. Finding this woman will be of no difference if you are not around. To trigger your return, all you have to do is concentrate on where you left from.”

“I’m so tired.” I mumbled, “Could you just do it again?”

“Of course, (Y/N)” he said softly. He pressed his hands to my temples again, smiling sadly. “Sleep well, darling.” He pressed his lips to my forehead, and my skin tingled long after I had returned to my room.

I was barely able to stumble to my bed before sleep overtook me. It was a dreamless sleep, only disturbed when I was awoken by a maid gently shaking me. 

“My lady, Queen Frigga wishes to see you. She would like you to attend the trial with her.”

I nodded, groggily sitting up and stretching.

“If you don’t mind, my lady, she asked that you come quickly.” the maid said, “There is little time left before it begins.”

Those words snapped me into lucidity, and I rushed to get ready. I followed the maid down a few hallways, and I met Frigga, her brow laden with worry.

“I fear this is not going to go well.” Frigga said, “Odin spoke to Loki this morning while in his cell, and agitated him a great deal. I have been unable to contact him and I am not sure how level headed he will be.”

“Maybe our presence will help him remain calm.” I said, my nervousness increasing. 

“That is my hope as well.” Frigga said, leading me towards the throne room. “And it is the only hope we have left to cling to.”

When we entered the throne room, our footsteps echoed in the empty room. Odin sat on his throne, his face awash with disappointment and frustration. Frigga stood to the right hand of the throne on the ground, watching as Loki was lead by several armed guards. He was in chance from head to foot, two guards holding the chains attached to him as he walked. 

“Loki.” Frigga said, her expression dark.

“Hello, Mother.” Loki responded, glancing up to Odin, “Have I made you proud?”

“Please, don’t make this worse.” she pleaded.

“Define worse.” Loki retorted, sadness washing across his face for a small moment.

“Enough!” Odin shouted, “I will speak to the prisoner alone.”

Frigga slowly walked away, grabbing my hand as we walked out of Odin’s sight and hid behind a large pillar.

“I really don’t see what all of the fuss is about.” Loki laughed, “Do you not remember the countless numbers you killed in the name of Asgard?”

“Do you truly not feel the gravity of your crimes?” Odin responded, anger rising in his voice. “Wherever you go there is war, ruin, and death.”

“I went down to Midgard to rule the people of Earth as a benevolent god. Just like you.”

“We are not gods.” Odin stated, “We are born, we live, we die. Just as humans do.”

“Give or take five thousand years.”

“All of this because Loki desires a throne.” Odin sighed.

“It is my birthright.” Loki defied, “Or have you forgotten all that you ever taught me as a child? I was simply laying truth to what I had been taught was my birthright my entire life.”

“YOUR BIRTHRIGHT-” Odin yelled, “WAS TO DIE. As a child, cast out onto a frozen rock. If I had not taken you in, you would not be here now to hate me.”

“If I am for the axe, then for mercy’s sake, just swing it.” Loki sighed, “It’s not that I don’t love our little talks, its just…. I don’t love them.”

“Frigga is the only reason you are still alive, and you will never see her again.” Odin said, “You will spend the rest of your days in the dungeons.”

My mind flooded with a mixture of both relief and sorrow, blood rushing through my ears as I let go of a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. I held Frigga’s hands as we both relaxed a small amount, leaning once more to listen to their conversation.

“Thor must strive to undo the damage you have done.” Odin said, “He will bring order to the nine realms, and then, yes. He will be king.”

Frigga and I quickly and quietly left the throne room, slowing once we had reached the outside hallway.

“That could have been a lot worse.” I said, sighing.

“It could also have gone a great deal better.” Frigga responded. 

“Will we be able to do anything about it? Maybe once Odin calms down?” I said, “I could try to explain what happened, and-”

“I already attempted to reason with Odin. It only made him angrier. For now, we must wait and live with what is happening.” Frigga said.

A loud boom echoed through the sky, and I looked out to the city for the source of the sound. I could see that there was a bridge, filled with all the colors of the rainbow, and a beam of light shot out from the end of the bridge.

“Thor is home.” Frigga said.


	5. Chapter 5

Thor was escorted back to the palace, where he met with his father to debrief on what he had done in the nine realms since he left. Frigga said that I should explore around while she searched the last of the libraries. 

I encountered what seemed to be a large party, a celebration of Thor’s exploits in the nine realms. Eventually, the god of thunder himself showed up, albeit with little enthusiasm. He eventually slipped away quietly, and I followed him. He spoke with a lady warrior for a small while, before turning to me.

“Hello, child of Coul. Do you have something you wish to speak of?” he said, a warm smile spreading across his face.

“I’ve had more visions.” I said, “We think they come from the Tesseract.”

“Then please, come along with me.” he said, “I would enjoy the company while I walk, and you can relay to me these visions you have had. Perhaps you can also tell me what has become of my brother, since my father is insistent on saying nothing of him.”

I walked along with Thor, recounting the different visions I had been given since he left. He seemed very interested in the strange woman, but I couldn’t give a good enough description of her for him to recognize who it was. We started walking out on the rainbow bridge, towards what looked like a large observatory at the end. I had just finished telling him what Odin had done with Loki when we came up upon the observatory-like structure. Inside stood a single man, his golden armor gleaming in the starlight that shone through the building.

“You’re late.” the man said.

“Merriment can sometimes be a heavier burden than battle, Heimdall.” Thor said wistfully.

“Then you’re doing one of them incorrectly.” Heimdall said, causing Thor to chuckle.

“Perhaps.” Thor responded. “How fare the stars?”

“Still shining.” Heimdall responded, staring out to the openness of space. “From here I can see Nine Realms and ten trillion souls. You recall what I told you of the Convergence?”

“Yes,” Thor said, “The alignment of the worlds.”

“It’s getting closer, isn’t it?” I asked, taking in the beauty of the galaxies in the distance.

“The universe hasn’t seen this marvel since before my watch began. Few can sense, and even fewer can see it. A world that’s infected can be dangerous.” Heimdall said, then lowering his voice, “It is truly beautiful.”

“I see nothing.” Thor said, gazing out with us.

“Or perhaps that is not the beauty you seek.” Heimdall said with a smile.

“How is she?” Thor laughed.

“She’s quite clever, your mortal.” Heimdall said. “She doesn’t know it yet, but she studies the Convergence as well. Even-”

“What?” Thor said, visibly alarmed at Heimdall’s sudden stop.

“I can’t see her.” Heimdall answered.

“Send me down, now!” Thor said, his anxiety written clearly across his face and in his voice.

Heimdall nodded, inserting his sword into a receptacle. The rainbow bridge lighting up as Thor was sucked into its light beam.

“Things have now been set in motion that will not be easy to correct.” Heimdall said, looking to me. “Use the knowledge that the Tesseract has given you wisely.”

I nodded, “I will. How did you-”

“It is my job to watch over all living things.” he said, “Especially when they are so heavily entangled with not only an infinity stone, but a member of my king’s family.”

In a few moments, Heimdall moved his sword once more, bringing Thor back from earth, along with another person.

“We have to do that again!” the woman said, glancing towards Heimdall and myself. “Hi.”

“Welcome to Asgard, Jane.” Heimdall said.

I looked closely at Jane, almost unable to believe my eyes. “Thor…” I said, pointing to Jane, “She’s the one I saw. She has the Aether in her.”

Thor paled, and took Jane’s hand.

“Come,” he said, “We will take you to our physicians, they may be able to help you.”

We raced through the city, into the palace. Jane was made to lay on the physician’s table, her form projected above her for the doctors to study.

“What’s that?” Jane asked, pointing to the projection.

“Be still.” the woman said, never looking away from her instruments.

“Will she be alright?” Thor asked.

“I do not know. But she will not survive the amount of energy surging within her.” the nurse said, “Unlike that one, she has the entire infinity stone’s energy in her, not only part.”

“That’s a quantum field generator, isn’t it?” Jane asked again, gesturing to the projection.

“It’s a Soul Forge.” the woman answered, agitation lacing her voice.

“Does a Soul Forge transfer molecular energy from one place to another?” Jane insisted.

“Yes.” the woman answered, impressed.

“It’s a quantum field generator.” Jane whispered at both myself and Thor.

Then, Odin strode in, frustration radiating off him.

“My words are mere noises to you that you ignore them completely?” He demanded, walking straight up to Thor.

“She’s ill-” Thor said, before Odin cut him off.

“She is mortal, as is this one.” Odin said, gesturing to me. “Illness is their defining trait.”

“I brought her here because we can help her.” Thor said.

“They do not belong here in Asgard any more than a goat belongs at a banquet table.” Odin retorted, glancing at me.

“Did he just…?” Jane said, “Who do you think you are?”

“I’m Odin. King of Asgard, Protector of the Nine Realms.”

“Oh, well, I’m…”

“I know very well who you are, Jane Foster.” Odin retorted angrily.

“You told your dad about me?” Jane whispered to Thor.

“Something is within her father, something we have not seen before. She also has an inf-” Thor said.

“Her world has it’s healers. Their doctors. Let them deal with it.” Odin said. “Guards, take her back to Midgard.”

As soon as the soldiers went to lay hands on Jane, a red blast of energy radiated from her, throwing the soldiers back. Jane fell to the floor, and Thor knelt at her side.

“Don’t touch her!” Thor warned, brushing her cheek with his hand. “Jane, are you alright?”

Jane nodded, and Odin inspected the bright red energy force that was visibly flowing through her veins.

“The Aether.” Odin breathed, “That’s impossible.”

“The infection, it’s defending her.” the Nurse said in surprise.

“No, it’s defending itself.” Thor clarified, helping Jane rise to her feet.

“Come with me, you two.” Odin said to Thor and Jane. “There are relics that predate the universe itself. What lies within her appears to be one of them.”

Odin lead Thor and Jane away, and I turned to find Frigga. I found her in her room, and I recounted to her what we had discovered and the vision that I had. 

“Then our time is up.” Frigga sighed. “I must speak with my son. You may come with, if you wish.”

I nodded, and she waved her hand, transporting us to the inside of Loki’s cell once more.

“Odin continues to bring me new friends.” Loki said, gazing out at other prisoners from Vanaheim being led to their own cells. “How thoughtful.”

“The books I sent. Do they not interest you?” Frigga said, sadness lacing her voice.

“Is that how I’m to while away my eternity, reading?” he said, “Trapped in this cell while those dearest to me are in danger?”

“I’ve done everything in my power to make you comfortable, Loki.”

“Have you? Does Odin suddenly share your concern? Does Thor?” Loki asked, sarcasm creeping in. “It must be so inconvenient, them asking after me day and night.”

“You know full well that it was your actions that brought you here.” Frigga sighed.

“My actions,” he retorted. “I was merely giving truth to the lie that I had been fed my entire life, that I was born to be a king. Flawed means though they were, that was the end.”

“A king? A true king admits his faults.” Frigga said, causing Loki’s face to fall. “What of the lives you took on earth?” Frigga’s voice showed her frustration.

“A mere handful compared to the number that Odin has taken himself.” Loki said, his face darkening.

“Your father-”

“He’s NOT my father!” Loki shouted, tears welling in his eyes at his outburst.

“Then am I not your mother?” Frigga asked softly.

Loki paused, struggling with something within himself before answering. “You’re not.”

Frigga smiled, tears welling in her eyes. “Always so perceptive about everyone but yourself.”

She stepped forwards, extending her hands to him, but his hands went through hers. “In time, perhaps you will be able to see what I do.” she said, slowly disappearing.

Loki turned to me, his expression longing and broken. “I’m sorry that I couldn’t save you.”   
“It was never your job to begin with.” I answered, pausing for a bit. “The woman from my visions is here.”  
“Really?” Loki said, his face brightening a bit, “You found her?”  
“Well, actually Thor did.” I responded, “It’s Jane Foster. The midgardian that Thor has an attachment to. She is the one who has the Aether flowing in her. It’s also slowly killing her. Its energy is understandably much greater than the energy in my own body, and it’s defending itself from within her.”   
“How are we to get Jane foster to Svartalfheim?” he said, “Even if it meant getting the Aether and Tesseract out of the two of you, Thor would never allow that.”  
“I don’t know.” I said, “I’ll see if I can figure that out. My visions haven’t been wrong so far.”  
“Be very cautious.” he said, glancing at the prisoners still being escorted in behind him. “I get the feeling that something might happen soon.”

I nodded, reaching out to touch his cheek, surprised that I didn’t pass through him. He pulled me into a tight hug, which I gratefully returned. He pressed his lips to my forehead as I faded away. 

“Be safe, Darling.”

I apparated next to Frigga, who was walking up to Thor and Jane.

“Don’t let him hear you say that.” Frigga smiled.

I walked up to stand next to her, waving to Jane.

“Jane Foster, please meet Frigga, the Queen of Asgard, my mother.” Thor said, then gesturing to me, “And (Y/N). She also is host to an infinity stone’s power.”

“Hi.” Jane said, obviously made uncomfortable by meeting Thor’s mother. 

Before anything more could be said, an alarm sounded in the palace.

“The prisons.” Frigga said.

“Loki.” Thor added.

“Go,” Frigga said, “I will look after both of them.”

Frigga took our hands and rushed us down the hallway. Odin walked up to us, surrounded by his guards.

“Send a squadron to the weapons vault, defend it at all costs.” Odin said, doubtless concerned about the Tesseract. “Seal the dungeon.”

As the guards left, Frigga turned to her husband. “Odin.”

“Frigga.” he said. Turning to Jane and myself, he added, “It’s a skirmish, nothing to fear.”

“You’ve never been a very good liar.” Frigga said, smirking at Odin.

“Take them to your chambers. I’ll come for you when it’s safe.” Odin said, preparing to leave.

“You take care.” Frigga said.

“Despite all I have survived, my queen still worries over me.” Odin smiled.

“It’s only because I worry over you that you have survived.” Frigga called after Odin as he left.

“Listen to me now, I need you both to do everything I ask and no questions.” Frigga said, her tone serious.

“Yes ma’am.” Jane and I both answered, matching her quick pace to her room.

We closed all the doors once inside, the only way out a large balcony facing the city.

A golden shimmer of light seemed to surround the castle, encasing it in an impenetrable globe. Ships appeared in the sky, shooting at the city and attempting to breach the castle’s defenses.

“We are under attack.” Frigga said, looking out at the city. Turning back to us, she added “Those are Dark Elf ships. Malekith has doubtless come for the Aether. We must protect you, Jane, at all costs.”

I nodded. “I think I have an idea.”


	6. Chapter 6

We stood alone in the room for what felt like an eternity, the castle shaking and groaning around us with every explosion. I stood in the room with Frigga, armed with a knife that Frigga had given me while Jane was hidden safely as a hologram of her stood by me. Malekith soon entered, the doors flying open at his entrance.

“Stand down, creature.” Frigga said firmly, holding her shortsword. “You may still survive this.” 

“I have survived worse, woman.” Malekith growled.

“Who are you?” Frigga asked, moving to meet the Dark Elf.

“I am Malekith, and I would have what is mine.” he said, coming ever closer to Frigga. 

Once he was within arm’s reach, Frigga slashed out, striking him in the face with her sword. A fight ensued, Malekith’s men stepping in to help him subdue the Queen. Before I could do anything to aid her, Frigga was held and restrained by Malekith’s men.

“You have taken something, child.” Malekith said, looking at me. “Give it back.” 

I smirked, knowing he thought I held the Aether. “You’ll have to try harder than that.” I said, holding my knife up higher.

He gestured out, as he had in my vision of Svartalfheim. When I did not begin to levitate, his face shifted to one of anger.

“Enough games!” he shouted, stepping forward with lightning speed dragging his own knife down my forearm. Shoving me aside, he stepped towards the hologram of Jane, moving to grab her. His hand passed clean through, causing the illusion to melt away.

“Witch!” he shouted angrily, “Where is the Aether?”

“I’ll never tell.” Frigga said, smiling.

“I believe you.” Malekith said.

Without warning, one of Malekith’s men stabbed Frigga in her back. With a crack of white-hot lightning, Thor rushed in the door, shooting a lightning bolt at Malekith’s face. Malekith stumbled up and to the balcony, jumping to his ship with the biggest of his men before Thor could stop him. I screamed, tears streaming down my face as blood streamed from my arm. Odin ran in, only to find Frigga dead. Odin held her body in his arms as Thor yelled out, throwing his hammer at the Dark Elf ship that sped off without hindrance. 

That night, Frigga was given a beautiful funeral. All Asgard came to mourn her as her body was pushed out to sea on a boat. A single flaming arrow was shot out, setting the boat aflame before floating out past the edge of the sea, continuing out. Out of the boat came several glowing lights, shooting up into the sky to form a new constellation. Slowly, all of the people mourning left, leaving only myself, Jane, Thor, and Odin standing to watch the stars shine. A guard told Odin that Loki had been informed of his mother’s death, and my heart hurt for him. He hadn’t even gotten to see her one last time since he had been emotional from the trial. It was doubtless that he heavily regretted what turned out to be his last words to her.

The next day, after I had my arm wound attended to, I met with Thor at one of the local taverns. We ate in silence. Heimdall eventually came up to us, setting his helm on the table.

“You’re not in Odin’s war council?” Thor queried, gesturing to the helm.

“The Bifrost is closed by your father’s orders. No one is to come, or to go.” Heimdall sighed, sitting down with a look of defeat on his face. “We face an enemy that is invisible even to me. Of what use is a guardian such as that?”

“Malekith will return, you know this.” Thor said, lowering his voice. “I’ll need your help.”

“I cannot overrule my King’s wishes, not even for you.” Heimdall said, matching Thor’s volume.

“I’m not asking you to. The Realms need their All-Father strong and unchallenged, whether he is or not.” Thor said, “But he is blinded, Heimdall, by hatred and by grief.”

“As are we all.” Heimdall said, looking at Thor intently.

“Well I see clearly enough.”

“The risks are too great.” Heimdall rebutted, sitting back in his chair.

“Everything that we do from here on is a risk, there is no other way!” Thor said.

Heimdall hesitated, sighing before replying “What would you require of me?”

“Meet me and the warriors three, and Sif in an hour. I will speak of then.” Thor said, and Heimdall nodded, picking up his helm.

We all convened in Thor’s quarters, Heimdall ensuring us that no one was watching or listening.

“What I’m about to ask of you is treason of the highest order. Success will bring us exile and failure shall mean our death. Malekith knew that the Aether was here, he can sense its power. If we do nothing, he will come for it again, but this time lay waste to all of Asgard.” Thor looked around the room at all of us. “We must move Jane off world.”

“The Bifrost has been shut down and the Tesseract locked away in a vault.” Sif said, “And while (Y/N) does possess some of the Tesseract’s energy, it is doubtless not nearly enough to transport anyone.”  
“There are other paths off Asgard, ways known only to a few.” Heimdall said, looking at Thor.  
“One, actually.” Thor said, looking to me. Loki.  
“No.” Volstagg said. “You can’t be serious. How can you even think of trusting him?”  
“He isn’t beyond reason this time.” Thor said, “Don’t forget, it was his mother that died at Malekith’s hands too. Also, there is another thing that could motivate him to come. Or, rather, someone.” Thor looked at me intently, and I nodded.  
“Let’s go get him.” I said, “We have no time to waste.”  
We walked down to the dungeon, Thor knocking the guards out to let us speak with Loki. Loki stood in his cell, looking exactly as he did before I left him. Something seemed off, however.   
“Thor, after all this time, and now you come to visit me.” Loki said, “Why? Have you come to gloat? To mock?”  
“Loki, enough.” Thor sighed, “No more illusions”  
Loki’s cell shimmered, an illusion melting away to reveal that his cell was actually a mess, all of the furniture thrown around in his grief. Loki sat on the floor, looking unkempt and messy, in the corner of his cell.  
“Now you see me, brother.” Loki said softly. Looking to me, his expression broken, he asked, “Did she suffer?”  
“I did not come here to share our grief.” Thor said, “Instead I offer you the chance of a far richer sacrament.”  
“Go on.” Loki said.  
“I know you would seek vengeance as much as I do.” Thor said, “You help me escape Asgard and I will grant it to you, vengeance. And afterwards, this cell.”  
Loki chuckled, “You must be truly desperate to come to me for help. What makes you think that you can trust me?”  
“I don’t.” Thor said, “Mother did. You should know that when we fought each other in the past, I did so with a glimmer of hope that my brother was still in there somewhere. That hope no longer exists to protect you. You betray me, and I will kill you.”  
“And if I say no?” Loki said.   
“I know you won’t.” Thor said.  
“So confident!” Loki said, smirking. “How do you know that?”  
“Because it’s the only way we can free (Y/N) from the Tesseract.”  
“Hmm.” Loki paused; his face set with resolve. “When do we start?”  
We freed Loki from his cell, Loki using his magic to change into fresh clothing and neatening his appearance. We passed the unconscious guards, Fandral helping us to leave the dungeon unnoticed.  
“He will betray you.” Fandral said quietly.  
“He will try.” Thor said, leaving Fandral as we walked towards the throne room.  
“This is so unlike you, brother. So clandestine.” Loki said, grinning ear to ear, “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather just punch your way out?”  
“If you keep speaking I just might.” Thor grumbled.  
“Fine, as you wish. I’m not even here.” Loki responded, turning himself into an Asgardian guard with a green shimmer. “Is this better?”  
“It’s better company at least.” Thor sighed.  
“Still, we could be less conspicuous.” Loki said, turning back into himself, but turning Thor into Sif. “Hm, brother. You look ravishing.” Loki teased.  
“It will hurt no less when I kill you in this form.” Thor retorted, his deep voice sounding strange when coming from Sif’s face.  
“Very well. Perhaps you prefer one of your new companions, given that you seem to like them so much.” Loki said, returning Thor to his original form. When I glanced over at Loki once more, he had turned himself into Steve Rogers, complete with Captain America uniform. “Oh, this is much better. Whoah. The costume’s a bit much, so tight. But the confidence, I can feel the righteousness surging. Hey,” he said turning to walk backwards and speak with us, “you wanna have a rousing discussion about truth, honor, patriotism? God bless Amer-”   
Thor suddenly grabbed a hold of Loki, placing his hand tightly over Loki’s mouth and pushing him into the wall, making Loki turn back into himself.  
“What?” Loki complained, as Thor watched two guards walk away. “You could at least furnish me with a weapon. My dagger, something!”  
Thor looked at him, and for a moment I thought he was moving to give Loki a knife.  
“At last, a little common sense.” Loki said, smiling. Then, he looked down, his face falling as he lifted his hands, now shackled in handcuffs.  
“And I thought you liked tricks.” Thor laughed, leading us to the throne room once more.  
We met Sif there, Jane standing next to her nervously.  
“You’re-” Jane said, staring at Loki with mouth agape.  
“I’m Loki.” he said with a grin. “You may have heard of…”  
Loki was cut off by Jane slapping him across the face.  
“That was for New York.” Jane said indignantly.  
Loki smiled, looking over at Thor. “I like her.”  
“Heimdall has doubtless informed Odin by now.” I said, “We really should get going.”  
As if my words had cued them, guards came running into the entrance to the throne room.   
“There they are! Take them. On my command!” they shouted, advancing.  
“I’ll hold them off. Take them.” Sif said to Thor.  
“Thank you, Sif.” Thor said, guiding Jane further into the room.  
Sif drew her sword, placing it under Loki’s throat in threat. “Betray him, and I’ll kill you.”  
Loki chuckled, “It’s good to see you too, Sif.”  
Sif turned to deal with the guards, and Loki and I strode up to Thor and Jane, who were meeting Volstagg near one of Malekith’s ships.   
“I will give you as much time as I can.” Volstagg said, the sounds of shouting guards echoing behind us.   
“Thank you, my friend.” Thor said, shaking Volstagg’s forearm.  
Thor and Jane walked up into the ship, and Loki and I were about to when Volstagg stopped him.  
“If you even think about betraying him…”  
“You’ll, kill me?” Loki retorted. “Evidently there will be a line.”  
Volstagg released Loki, and we both entered the ship. Thor was pressing several buttons, trying to get displays to work fruitlessly.   
“I thought you said you knew how to fly this thing.” Loki said, staring at Thor.  
“How hard could it be?” Thor said, still pressing buttons as guards rushed towards the ship, Volstagg standing guard.  
“Well, whatever you’re doing, brother, I suggest you do it faster.” Loki said, stepping to be closer to me.  
“Shut up, Loki.” Thor grunted, continuing to fiddle with controls.  
“You must have missed something.” Loki said calmly.  
“No, I didn’t, I’m pressing every button on this thing.” Thor said, smashing buttons with frustration.  
“No, don’t hit it, just press it gently.” Loki chided to no avail.  
“I am pressing gently, it’s not working!” Thor said.   
Suddenly, the ship sprung to life, causing Thor to laugh. The ship slowly rose, and Thor maneuvered it around to get ready to leave. The ship’s long, dagger-like shape caused the maneuver to destroy several columns, sending debris cascading to the ground. The heads up display of the ship lit up, and we could “see” right through the ship in all directions.  
“I think you missed a column.” Loki said snarkily.  
“Shut up!” Thor said, breaking the ship through the palace walls to take off.  
“Look, why don't you let me take over,” Loki said as we flew over Asgard, “I’m clearly the better pilot.”  
“Is that right?” Thor contested, “Well, out of the two of us, which one can actually fly?”  
Before Loki could quip back, Jane collapsed to the ground.  
“Oh dear.” Loki said, “Is she dead?”  
I knelt by her side, trying to make sure that she was alright.   
“Jane.” Thor said as Jane raised her head, the Aether having obviously made her very weak.  
“I’m okay.” she said quietly, resting her head back down as we continued to fly over the city.   
Thor hit a building, shaving off a massive chunk of architecture and sending it to the ground.  
“Not a word.” Thor said, staring Loki down.  
We looked back to see several small Asgardian ships following us, guards filling each one.  
“Now they’re following us.” Loki said, jostled when the ship was hit with a laser. “Now they’re firing at us”  
“Yes, thank you for the commentary, Loki!” Thor shouted, “It’s not at all distracting!”  
In the middle of his remark, Thor hit a massive stone monument of a king, breaking its head off.  
“Well done, you’ve just decapitated your grandfather.” Loki quipped. “You know, this is wonderful. This is a tremendous idea. Let’s just steal the biggest, most obvious ship in the universe and escape in that. Flying around the city, smashing into everything in sight so that everyone can see us. It’s brilliant Thor, it’s truly brilliant!”  
Thor, having opened the door while Loki was ranting, shoved Loki out of the ship. He turned and picked up Jane, prompting me to jump as well. We all landed on a small Asgardian ship flown by Fandral, Loki grumbling as he got up. I gripped my wounded arm, having re-injured it with my landing.  
“I see your time in the dungeons has made you no less graceful, Loki!” Fandral laughed, glancing up to make sure that the guards were still firing on Malekith’s ship. Thor laid Jane down in the bow.  
“You lied to me.” Loki said, nodding to Thor. “I’m impressed.”  
“I’m glad you’re pleased.” Thor said, sitting by Jane. “Now, do as you promised. Take us to your secret pathway.”  
Loki smiled, walking over to take the ships control from Fandral. As Loki held the control, the guards began to fire on our ship, their shots narrowly missing us.   
“Right.” fandral said, picking up a rope and standing on the edge of the ship. “For Asgard!” he yelled as he jumped off of the ship and used the rope to swing on the guard’s ship below us.  
With the guards distracted, Loki directed our ship right between two small mountains, towards an opening far too small for our ship to fit through. My pulse elevated slightly. He wouldn’t purposely kill all of us, right?  
“Loki!” Thor shouted in warning.  
“If it were easy, everyone would do it.” Loki said, seemingly to himself.  
“Are you mad?” Thor asked, his voice raising the closer we got to the mountain.  
“Possibly.” Loki said, bracing himself.  
Thor held on to Jane, bracing against the bow, and I dropped to a crouch, holding both the rail of the ship and Loki’s leg to keep myself still.   
We skimmed right through the opening, the sides of the ship rubbing on the mountainside. We were surrounded by green, shimmering light, and promptly appeared amidst a barren, rock-covered plain.


	7. Chapter 7

“Ta-da!” Loki said in a sing song voice, glancing down to smile at me. 

Thor stood, putting a blanket over a resting Jane.

“What I could do with the power that flows through those veins.” Loki said, looking at Jane.

“It would consume you.” Thor said.

“It already has.” Loki mumbled quietly, glancing at me. “She’s holding up alright, for now.” He said louder, gesturing to Jane.

“She’s strong in ways you’d never know.” Thor said.

“Say goodbye.” Loki said, though I wasn’t sure if he was saying it to Thor.

“Not this day.” Thor answered, making sure Jane was comfortable.

“This day, the next, a hundred years, it’s nothing. It’s a heartbeat.” Loki said, tears welling in his eyes as his voice became heavy with emotion. “You’ll never be ready. The only woman whose love you’ve prized will be snatched from you.” Loki’s voice quivered, glancing to me before staring intently at Thor. 

“And will that satisfy you?” Thor asked.

“Satisfaction is not in my nature.” Loki said, regaining his composure.

“Surrender is not in mine.” Thor stated.

“The son of Odin.” Loki sighed.

“No, not just of Odin!” Thor exclaimed, standing, and walking closer to Loki. “You think you alone were loved of mother? You had her tricks, but I had her trust!”

“Trust.” Loki scoffed, “Was that her last expression? Trust? When you let her DIE?!”

“What help were you in your cell?” Thor countered, his own emotion lacing his voice.

“Who put me there?” Loki said, denial, sorrow, guilt, and anger raging, “WHO PUT ME THERE?”

Thor grabbed a hold of Loki, pushing him against the ship. “You know damn well! You know damn well who!” Thor raised his fist to punch Loki but stopped himself. “She wouldn’t want us to fight.”

“Well, she wouldn’t exactly be shocked.” Loki said cracking a small smile.

Thor returned the smile. “I wish I could trust you.”

Loki’s expression returned to that of seriousness, “Trust my rage.” his stare was so full of intent, I shivered. Loki meant business.

He knelt, gently taking my injured arm. “How did this happen?” he asked, helping me to re-apply the bandage to stop the bleeding.

“Malekith.” I said, “I was helping defend Jane, and it didn’t quite go according to plan.”

“My brave little Valkyrie.” he chuckled, pressing his lips to my forehead. “You seem to get yourself in trouble no matter who you’re left with.” 

“Occupational hazard.” I said with a smile, a blush creeping across my cheeks. 

Jane’s eyes flew open, their normal warm brown replaced with startling color. She rises, the Aether showing itself in her veins, and she looked ahead.

“Jane.” Thor said, nervous.

“Malekith.” Jane said ominously, her hair flowing in the wind.

“What exactly are we going to do?” Thor said.

“You mean you came all this way without a plan?” Loki scoffed.

“There were too many variable options when we were first forming our plan!” Thor snapped back.

“We could use me to our advantage.” Loki said. “He doesn’t know me. For all he knows I hate you.”

“I thought you did hate me.” Thor said.

“That’s beside the point.” Loki said, “I can pretend to betray you and offer Jane as compensation for allowing me to live. Once he’s taken the Aether, it’ll be vulnerable until it’s inside him…”

“Sweeten the deal.” Thor said, “Offer both of them. He does not know that (Y/N) doesn’t contain all of the Tesseract’s energy. If he takes it from her, she’ll be free of it.” 

Loki hesitated, looking at me longingly. “What do you think?”

“I think it’s the only choice we have.” I said. 

“How are we going to ‘Betray’ Thor convincingly?” Jane said.

“You’ll see.” Loki said, bringing the ship to a halt just before a small cliffside. After stopping the ship, we all got out to see Malekith and his men approaching. 

“Alright, are you ready?” Thor asked, and Jane nodded her head.

Loki looked at me, his eyes such a heavy mixture of emotion I couldn’t respond in any way but staring back. He closed the distance between us, his lips pressing firmly to my own. Fire raced from my lips all the way down to my toes, and back up. It was over as quickly as it had started, but the emotion in Loki’s eyes hadn’t faded in the slightest. My entire body felt like jelly, my stomach a warm ball of longing. My lips tingled, wanting more.

“I am.” he said, not taking his eyes off me. “You know this plan is going to get us killed.”

“Yea, possibly.” Thor said, hesitantly uncuffing Loki.

“You still don’t trust me, brother?” Loki questioned.

“Would you?” Thor said.

“No, I wouldn’t.” Loki said, a dagger shimmering into existence in his hands, stabbing Thor and throwing him down the hill.

“Thor, No!” Jane yelled, causing Malekith to look over and begin walking towards us. We all slid down the hill, following Thor as he tumbled down. Loki walked over to Thor, kicking him in the stomach to roll him over.

“You really think I cared about Frigga, about any of you?” Loki sneered, “All I ever wanted was you and Odin, dead at my feet!” 

Thor raised his hand to summon Mjolnir, but Loki cut off his hand before the hammer could be grabbed, causing Thor to scream out in pain. Jane rushed over to Thor, but Loki grabbed her and me, turning to face Malekith and his Dark Elves.

“Malekith, I am Loki of Jotunheim, and I bring you a gift!” He threw Jane down, “The Aether, and the Tesseract!” he gestured to me. “I ask only one thing in return, a good seat from which to watch Asgard burn.”

One of Malekith’s men spoke to him in a strange tongue, seemingly convincing Malekith to accept the deal. 

“I know that girl does not have the full power of the space stone.” Malekith said. “She is of no importance to me.” 

My heart dropped, the sinking feeling in my stomach threatening to consume me. 

“Look at me.” Malekith said, using his foot to turn Thor over. Malekith lifted Jane into the air, beginning to extract the Aether from her just as I had seen in my vision. As the last of the Aether was drained from her, Jane dropped to the ground. I ran over to Jane, making sure that she was still conscious.

“Loki, now!” Thor yelled, reaching his amputated arm towards Mjolnir. With a wave of Loki’s hand, a green shimmer revealed that Thor’s hand had never been amputated, the hammer racing into Thor’s hand. Thor shot lightning into the Aether, attempting to destroy it with the white-hot electricity. Loki ran over to Jane and I, leaning over both of us with knife ready, shielding us. 

With a loud explosion, the Aether blew up into millions of tiny pieces, falling to the earth like shards of glass. Slowly, the shards began to float up into the air, returning to the liquid state and flowing into Malekith. We had utterly failed, and now Malekith had the Aether.

Two of the dark elves started to attack Thor, but he quickly took them down. The bulkiest Dark Elf threw a grenade-like object into the air towards us. Loki’s eyes widened in fear, shoving both myself and Jane away. Loki began to float, being sucked into what I could only describe as a black hole grenade.

“Loki!” I screamed, reaching for him, even though he was too high off the ground for me to touch.

Thor flew by, grabbing Loki and pulling him out of the vortex safely. Thor began trying to dispatch the bulky dark elf, while Loki defended Jane and I from the few normal elves left. Loki had just finished one and was taking a breath when the last one crept up behind him. Without thinking, I whipped out my gun, firing right between the Elf’s eyes, killing him instantly.

Loki looked at me in surprise, then back to the dead Elf. I shrugged, but before I could respond, I saw Thor behind Loki in the distance. 

“Thor needs help!” I exclaimed, running over as quickly as I could. Loki and Jane followed, Loki gaining on me quickly.

Thor was down on the ground, and the Elf was about to land the final blow when Loki ran him through with one of the Dark Elf’s swords. Loki stepped out from beside, distracting the elf long enough for me to arm the black hole grenade attached to the elf’s belt. The elf slowly turned to face Loki, grabbing him and pulling him down onto the blade that protruded from his chest.

“NOO!!!” Thor and I screamed in unison, tears streaming down my face.

“See you in hell, monster!” Loki breathed angrily, just in time for the vortex to consume the Elf and disappear.

I dove and knelt at Loki’s side, Thor rushing over to join me. “No, no no no! You fool, you didn’t listen!” Thor said, weeping through his words.

“I know.” Loki gasped, “I’m a fool. I’m a fool!”

Loki squirmed in pain, and I lifted his head into my lap. “Stay with me, ok?” I breathed, sobs wracking my body. 

“I’m sorry.” Loki stammered, looking to me and to Thor. “I’m sorry.”

“Shh.” I said, “Conserve your energy.”

“I’m sorry.” Loki repeated.

“It’s ok,” Thor said, nodding. “It’s alright, I’ll tell father what you did here today.”

“I didn’t do it for him.” Loki whispered, raising his hand to touch my cheek. But his hand never made it. It fell down slowly as his eyes closed; his body motionless.

Thor and I screamed in anguish, tears flowing freely from my eyes. Had he known he was going to die? Had the kiss he had given me been a kiss goodbye? My emotions overwhelmed me, and I lay down, sobbing into Loki’s chest. My veins felt on fire, but I didn’t pay attention. I didn’t care anymore. All I knew next was that I was surrounded by a blue light before I passed out.


	8. Chapter 8

I woke dazed and confused, staring at the rock ceiling of a cave. Thor and Jane were talking nearby, and while my body was physically fine, I felt like I had been hit by a truck. The sinking pit in my stomach was eating away at me, and I could feel tears still rolling down my cheeks. Had they moved him in here with me? How were we going to get his… his body back to Asgard? For that matter, with Loki gone, how were we going to get off of this planet at all?

I sat up slowly, attempting to stuff the emotion down. Regardless of what had… happened to Loki, I needed to focus. Finding a way off of this planet to stop Malekith is what mattered now. The mission took precedence over my emotional state. I looked over to Jane and Thor, their conversation clearer to me now.

“Jane.” Thor said softly, placing a hand on her face.

“Now we’re trapped here.” Jane said. “We don’t know what happened to Loki, (Y/N) has been asleep for hours and we have no way of getting off of this planet since-”

Music started playing, muffled but distinguishable. Jane and Thor looked at each other in confusion, then looking to me. When I had no answers, Jane looked at Thor again.  
“It’s not me.” Thor said, still bewildered.

Jane gasped slightly, taking her cell phone out of her pocket. “Hello? Richard?! Where are you?”

Jane put her phone on speaker, so we all might hear what Richard was saying.

“Oh my God! This is amazing!” She said, holding the phone aloft, trying to keep her connection strong.

“Is it?” the confused man said from the phone. “I quite enjoyed our lunch despite never actually ordering anything.”

“How am I getting service here?” Jane asked, inspecting her phone. 

“Is this a bad time?” Richard said. “Do you want me to try you later?”

“No, no, no! Please, whatever you do, do not hang up the phone!” Jane instructed frantically, looking around her.

“Okay then. I was just wondering if you wanted to try again?” Richard said, and I immediately realized who this man must be. “Uh, maybe dinner next time?”

“Uh… yea, yea, yea. Um… just stay on the phone, ok?” Jane stressed, looking further into the cave while trying to keep the conversation light.

“Yea, I will.” Richard said as Jane picked up car keys. 

“Oh my God.” Jane said, showing the keys to Thor. 

“Am I interrupting something?” Richard said.

“No, nothing at all.” Jane said, as Thor came to help me to stand so we could follow her. “Come on.” she said, leading us further back into the dark cave.

“I’m losing you there, are you in a tunnel?” Richard said, his voice breaking up as he spoke. “Hello?”

“Where are we going?” Thor asked, looking down to see several shoes on the ground. “Why are there so many shoes in here?”

Seconds later, we all took a step that led us immediately to earth. Shipping containers stood all around us, stacked haphazardly. I stumbled back slightly, the sudden shift of jumping from planet to planet enough to make me dizzy. Thor steadied me before walking over towards Jane, who was hurriedly running towards a car parked nearby. 

“Ian’s car!” Jane exclaimed, using the keys in her hand to unlock the vehicle. “We need to get to Darcy’s.” Jane said, gesturing for us to get into the car.

As we drove through the city, I looked to the front of the car. “What happened when I passed out?”

“I’m not exactly sure.” Thor said, turning to look at me. “Your eyes glowed white and your entire being seemed to be aflame with blue energy. There was a flash of blinding light, and when I was able to see you again, Loki was gone, and you were unconscious. I carried you to the cave we woke up in for safety.”

“You mean Loki’s...body, just disappeared?” I said quietly.

“It would seem that way.” Thor responded, “I know the Tesseract’s energy had something to do with it. I cannot say where he was transported, but he was definitely taken somewhere.”

I sat for the rest of the ride in silence. Had I accidentally sent him to the last place he had been with the Tesseract? Had I delivered him to The Chuitari and Thanos? What had become of him? My stomach turned at the thought of sending him to be found by his greatest enemies. Even though he was no longer living, I shuddered to think of what they might do to him.

When we pulled up to Darcy’s home, she opened the door, nearly screaming. “Jane!”

“Hey.” Jane answered, giving Darcy a hug.

“You can’t just leave like that, the whole world is going crazy!!” Darcy said, leading us into the house. “All the stuff we saw is spreading. Did you go to a party?”

“Erik?!” Jane and I said in unison, running up to the man.

“Jane, (Y/N), how wonderful!” he said, rising from his chair and embracing us, despite his lack of pants. “You’ve been to Asgard I see!”

“Where are your pants?” Jane asked, trying not to make the situation more awkward than it already was.

“Oh, uh, he, uh, says it helps him think.” a young man said, visibly uncomfortable.

“Ok Eian. Well, I’m gonna need everything you’ve got on this.” Jane said, turning to the group. “All the work you’ve been doing on gravimetric anomalies, everything.”

“Okay.” Selvig said, looking nervous, eyeing myself and Thor up and down.

“Are you well Erik?” Thor queried, causing Erik to chuckle for a moment.

“Your brother isn’t coming, is he?” Erik asked, serious once more.

“Loki is dead.” Thor said, heavy heart obvious through his words.

“Oh thank God.” Erik said, only to quickly backtrack and amend his statement. “I’m, I’m so sorry.”

“Thank you.” Thor said, smiling as Erik came to embrace him.

“Malekith is going to fire the Aether at a spot where all the nine realms are connected.” Jane said, going through her research.

“Amplifying the weapon’s impact.” Erik responded. “With each additional world, the power will increase exponentially. The effect would be universal.”

“Yes. Well, the alignment is only temporary.” Thor stressed. “He must be in exactly the right place at the right time.”

“Well, how do we know where that is?” Darcy asked, “We have a pretty big world here.”

“We follow the directions. This has happened before, thousands of years ago, and the Ancients were there to see it.” Erik placed a map of the British Isles on the coffee table, pointing around on the map. “All the great constructions: the Mayas, the Chinese, the Egyptians, they made use of the gravitational effects of the Convergence. And they left us a map.” Erik began drawing on the map with his marker, circling places and making lines between, “Stonehenge, Snowdon, the Great Orme. These are all coordinates taking us.. Here.” Erik pointed to Greenwich on the map.

“The walls between worlds will be almost non-existent. Physics is gonna go ballistic.” Jane said, smiling at the prospect. “Increases and decreases in gravity, spatial extrusions. The very fabric of reality is gonna be torn apart.”  
Thor summoned Mjolnir from the coat rack he had hung it on, looking around at the rest of us with a stoic resolve. Jane nodded to him, and Erik gulped.

“I better get my pants.”


	9. Chapter 9

We rolled into the center of Greenwich, Erik instructing us on how to take the scientific instruments and implement them around the square. I ran along with Jane and Erik, choosing to stay as close as I could to Jane so I might protect her, for Thor’s sake. He had dealt with enough strife already, and Jane being injured or worse did not need to be added to the list.

“Focus, this is important!” I heard Darcy yell at Ian across the way, frantically placing the anomaly devices.

My attention was drawn to the Thames river, Maleith’s ship appearing out of thin air and dragging along the ground. The ship moved forward, beginning to crash through the grounds of the library we stood outside. The ship ground to a halt as it continued to dig further into the ground, tearing up sod and cement. Malekith and his dark elves stepped off of the ship as the ramp descended. Thor flew up to them, raising his hammer in threat.

“You needn’t have come so far, Asgardian.” Malekith said, “Death would have come to you soon enough.”

“Not by your hand!” Thor yelled out, stepping closer.

“Your universe was never meant to be.” Malekith said, using the Aether to begin attacking Thor, “Your world and your family will be extinguished.”

“That’s our cue to get inside!” Erik said, shoving Jane towards the library doors. We rushed inside the building, setting up the gravimetric device hurriedly. “We’re running out of time.”

“Almost there.” Jane said, trying to keep Erik calm.

“Are you sure this is going to work?” Erik said, “These devices were made to detect anomalies, not cause them!”

“Oh, come on…” Jane said, waiting for the monitor to begin to work. “Come on, Darcy. Come on, (Y/N), we need to make sure she’s alright. Erik, guard the stuff.”

We ran off outside, searching the area for any sign of Jane’s intern. Thor and Malekith were still fighting, and Thor was thrown into a wall just as Jane found Darcy and Ian placing the last of Erik’s devices in the ground. Giving us a thumbs up, Jane nodded, running back to Selvig.

“The Convergence will be in full effect in seven minutes.” Erik said, looking out at the ship.

“That just means we have to keep Malekith busy for eight.” Jane said, adjusting some settings on her tablet. “Okay, you might wanna hold on to something.”

Jane turned on the device, causing all of the dark elves that had been near one of the posts to vanish completely. Darcy spoke to Jane over the phone, and Jane tried to respond as she adjusted the tablet once more.

“Well, gravitational fields interact with the weak spot between worlds creating…” Jane was cut off by Darcy, and Jane used the device to cause some more elves to vanish. This time, however, she also caused Darcy and Ian to disappear as well. 

“Oops.” Jane said sheepishly, continuing to watch the monitor.

“Let's go.” Erik said, pushing us along out of the open area we had been standing in.

Once inside the main part of the building, we noticed all of the students that were there crowding the windows with phones out, trying to record the fight happening outside.

“What are you all doing? You need to get out of here! Now!” Jane said, trying to get them to leave to a safer place.

“You're joking, right?” one of the students said, “That's Thor out there waving his hammer around and everything!” He returned to looking at his phone, trying to get footage of Thor amidst the chaos. The glass windows shattered as we continued running out, the students screaming as they ducked for cover.

We ran outside, a group of dark elves spotting us and beginning pursuit. Jane stopped, tampering with her tablet.

“Jane!” I yelled, trying to get her to run again.

“What are you doing?” Erik shouted, trying to be heard above the explosions and destruction.

“My signal's lost connection.” Jane said, frustrated.

“Jane! Come on!” Erik sad as he and I both grabbed Jane and forced her to begin running with us again.

When it became apparent that we would not be able to outrun the elves behind us, Jane managed to make the device work once more, removing the dark elves and replacing them with Darcy and Ian, who were in the middle of what appeared to be a passionate make out session.

“Darcy?” Jane said, bewildered.

“Jane!” Darcy said, dropping Ian to the ground in surprise. 

“Ian?” Erik asked, confused.

“Selvig!” Ian said, joyous to see us once more.

“Meow Meow!” Darcy exclaimed, pointing to Mjolnir as it flew by.

Running out to the main square, we saw Malekith walking up towards his ship, portals to all the realms appearing above him. The Aether swelled around him, beginning to climb up into every portal, the darkness beginning to take every realm.

“We’re out of time.” Jane said, running off ahead.

“Jane, Jane!” Erik said, running to catch up with her as Darcy and I followed.

Thor came running out from between buildings, hammerless and staring at the Aether’s red glow.

“Thor!” Jane yelled, coming to a stop by his side. “We’re too late.”

“The Convergence is at its peak.” Erik agreed, holding some of the stakes that we had used to change gravity earlier.

“Can those things stop him?” Thor asked, gesturing to the spears.

“Not from here.” Erik sighed.

“We can’t get close enough.” I said, “There’s no way we could do that.”

“I can.” Thor said, taking the stakes from Erik and rushing off towards Malekith.

The Aether had swollen to twice the size of the enormous ship, and Thor pressed through the dark red tornado until we could see him no more. Jane kept a watchful eye on her monitor, adjusting each device to activate as it separated from the group. 

When the last device was throne, we looked up to see Malekith staked to the front of his ship with the pole, struggling to break free. Jane activated the last device, causing Malekith to disappear, and the Aether to cease it’s advance upon the realms.

Dust and debris began to fall, slowly settling all around. Thor lay unconscious, face down in the dirt not too far from the dark elf ship. Jane ran to him, and I followed closely, tears streaming down my cheeks. The ship began to crumble, debris flying down as the ship began to lean towards us.

“Thor! NO!” Jane cried, trying to move Thor out of the way, but unable to move him. 

I reached for his other arm and tried to help her, still making no progress in moving the god of thunder’s body. The ship began to fall, and Jane threw herself on top of Thor, holding on to him with white knuckles and closed eyes. The ship was about to land directly on top of us, when it disappeared, leaving behind only the debris that it had released earlier.

“Everybody ok?” Erik said, looking around at all of us as Thor began to open his eyes. 

Darcy turned to continue kissing Ian as she had been earlier, and Thor and Jane simply smiled at each other. My stomach sank, reminded of what, or rather, who, I was missing. Who I would never see again. A sorrowful smile spread on my lips, and Thor looked at me, returning it.

Later that day, when Jane, Erik, Darcy, and Ian had returned to their apartment, I returned with Thor to Asgard. I decided to spend my time learning all that I could about magic, and hopefully how to remove the Tesseract’s energy from myself. I would learn how to read the various languages that the books were written in, and perhaps how to defend myself with Asgardian weapons in case of emergency. 

I kept far from the palace, not wanting Odin to be aware of my presence. He had not taken kindly to my last visit, and now that Thor had no interest in being king, I suspected that his distaste for me had only grown with time. For nearly four years I delved into study unhindered, slowly mastering not only the written languages, but fighting with short sword and mild magic combined. I had yet to find any answers about the infinity stone’s power, but I was content and happy with my new life.

Until one night, I had another vision. 

As clear as day, I saw Loki. Loki and Thor together. They stood in the outdoor amphitheater of the palace, surrounded by a small crowd while a play had stopped in the background. My eyes snapped open, the golden light of dawn slowly crawling in through my curtains.

Was Loki alive?


End file.
